"All the European institutions, or whether or not we are allowed to smoke in Italy and Belgium, don’t really make us feel more European. Music is a medium that reaches people at a basic level, and so the idea was born to start working on a European style of music."

Fusion Embassy manager Tim Gubel gazes at his juice at the Apartment Bar in the centre of Sofia as he explains the ideas behind Fusion Embassy. Gubel has a track record as a programming manager, artistic director and exhibition organiser in his native Belgium that lets him be bold in a typical soft-spoken Belgian style.

Create a European musical style through fusion, why be less ambitious?
"The idea is to create a network of musicians and have these musicians collaborate and record together, to reach a style of music in which people from different European countries can recognise their own folklore and identify," Gubel says.

Three steps
February will see the culmination of a year of projects for Fusion Embassy.
It was in the summer of 2009, when the organisation collected 15 Bulgarian musicians from different backgrounds and one Belgian composer for a week-long jam-session in the Bulgarian mountains.

These jam sessions were the foundations of what was to become the Fusion Orchestra. "We packed our instruments and recording equipment in a car and travelled to the village of Dolen where one of our musicians has an eco-home. Over the course of one week we lived, ate, drank and played together to get to know each other," says Gubel.

The summer mountain jam sessions were followed up in early November with a studio recording session, for which the troupe was joined by a second composer from Belgium.
"We recorded for 10 days in a small studio," Gubel says.

Events to come
As we meet Gubel, the orchestra has just concluded a rehearsal period in preparation for upcoming events in February. "On February 9 we organise a competition for Bulgarian fusion bands, called the Sofia Fusion Rally. The aim is to promote a number of Bulgarian bands who personify an open attitude to the world and to other types of music, bands who combine Bulgarian folk with funk, with reggae, with jazz and so on and who experiment with that," Gubel says.

After an open selection round, five bands have been selected to compete in the rally. That evening’s winner to be selected by a jury and the audience, will perform on February 13 together with the Fusion Orchestra and a selection of Bulgarian and Belgian DJs.

"One of the elements of the competition is to have the five bands perform their own interpretation of Lele Svashka, a Bulgarian folk song," Gubel says. The jury who, together with the audience at the concert, will select the winner of the rally, consists of Belgian fusion electro producer Endreece, a representative of Fusion Embassy, Bulgarian composer, musician and the man behind jazz ethno fusion band Balkan Horses, Krassimir Zhelyazkov, and a representative of the host venue Sofia Live Club.

Two days later, the Fusion Orchestra will perform for the first time in public, and in front of a live audience, at the studios of Bulgarian National Radio. Then, on February 13, is the grand finale – an evening-long concert including the winner of the Sofia Fusion Rally, the Fusion Orchestra and a selection of Belgian and Bulgarian DJs.

"Belgian DJ Madrugadao has been rehearsing for the past several weeks, combining Balkanton recordings with electro funk," Gubel says. Along with the concerts, there will also be an exhibition that will try to provide more background information on the origins of Bulgarian folk music and its original context and meaning.

The bigger picture
Five bands have been selected from around a dozen entries for the Sofia Fusion Rally. "I know it doesn’t sound like a lot, but it is a number I am very happy with," Gubel says. "And I was happily surprised with the quality," he says. The style of music played by the bands varies wildly and is described as ranging from combinations of tribal, trance and folklore, to a combination of jazz, chanson Francaise and folklore.

Asked how the Fusion Orchestra is different from what the current Bulgarian fusion music scene has to offer, Gubel says "the Fusion Orchestra has the ambition to be a dynamic collective".

The 2010 events were strongly oriented to bridging between Brussels and Sofia, but the organisation’s plans are not limited to that axis. "Later this year, or early next year, a Spaniard and an Italian will join the Orchestra. A year later we would like to have a Dutchman and a Frenchman join and add their input to the mix," Gubel says.

The programme
February 9
Sofia Fusion Rally
Sofia Live Club With Oranitza, Merudia, Flambura, Silver Beat Collective and Kargona
Entrance free

February 11
The Fusion Orchestra
Bulgarian National Radio
Entrance free

February 13
The Fusion Embassy Festival Electrofusion = MusiC2: Brussels - Sofia
Industriyalna 11, Sofia
With The Fusion Orchestra, the winners of the Sofia Fusion Rally, DJ Madrugadao (BE), Bulgarian Fusion DJs and an exhibition
Entrance 10 leva